New Dehli’s experiment with “clean” natural gas turned out to be not so clean after all.
A University of British Columbia study reports that,
“A pioneering program by one of the world’s largest cities to switch its vehicle fleet to clean fuel has not significantly improved harmful vehicle emissions in more than 5,000 vehicles – and worsened some vehicles’ climate impacts…”
Exploring the impacts of New Delhi’s 2003 conversion of 90,000 buses, taxis and auto-rickshaws to compressed natural gas (CNG), a “clean” fuel, the study found that,
“… CNG produced only minor reductions in emissions that cause air pollution and an increase in emissions that negatively impact climate change.”
According to the researchers,
“… the New Delhi’s program could have achieved greater emission reductions at a cheaper price by simply upgrading two-stroke models to the cleaner, more fuel-efficient four-stroke variety… since as much as one third of CNG is not properly burned in two-stroke engines, producing high emissions of methane, a major greenhouse gas that contributes to climate change. CNG use also produced substantial emissions of high particulate matter from unburned lubricating oil, which can appear as blue smoke.”
The researchers say this study should be a word of warning to,
“… other cities considering fuel-switching programs, especially those in rapidly industrializing cities in India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Philippines, Thailand, and Indonesia, where major auto-rickshaw fleets exist.”
Trying to reduce vehicle emissions in an attempt to curb pollution is a legitimate enterprise, but any attempt to do so in an effort to reduce the effect that vehicle emissions have on climate change is a stupid waste of time for one simple reason:
Greenhouse gasses HAVE NO statistically significant effect on climate change.
IT’S THE SUN STUPID!
…and btw: Warming is good !
fs